Flashback: McCain once sought to push the NRA out of the GOP.

In Louisville, KY today, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) will address nearly 60,000 gun enthusiasts at the annual National Rifle Association convention. McCain requested the speaking spot, but, as Cliff Schecter points out, McCain once said the NRA shouldn’t be embraced by the Republican Party:

The NRA is entitled to their advocacy. I don’t think they help the Republican Party at all, but I don’t think they should in any way play a major role in the Republican Party’s policy making. [CNN, 5/12/00]